Bus system including a bus arbiter for arbitrating access requests

Abstract

A bus system is provided, which includes a shared resource, a shared bus, a plurality of requesters, and a bus arbiter for arbitrating access requests made by the plurality of requesters to access the shared resource through the shared bus. At least one of the plurality of requesters outputs, according to an internal state in that requester, an internal state signal indicating that the priority of an access request made by that requester needs to be changed. The bus arbiter arbitrates the access requests in accordance with the internal state signal.

1. A bus system comprising:
 a shared resource; 
 a shared bus; 
 a plurality of requesters; and 
 a bus arbiter for arbitrating access requests made by the plurality of requesters to access the shared resource through the shared bus, 
 wherein at least one of the plurality of requesters has a cache memory and outputs, according to a cache hit rate of the cache memory, an internal state signal indicating that the priority of an access request made by that requester needs to be changed, 
 the bus arbiter arbitrates the access requests in accordance with the internal state signal, and 
 if a second cache hit rate, measured after an already measured first cache hit rate, is lower than a first value, which is lower than the first cache hit rate by a predetermined value, the requester having the cache memory makes the internal state signal indicate that the priority needs to be raised. 
 
     
     
       2. The bus system of  claim 1 , wherein if the second cache hit rate is higher than a second value, which is higher than the first cache hit rate by a predetermined value, the requester having the cache memory makes the internal state signal indicate that the priority needs to be lowered. 
     
     
       3. A bus system comprising:
 a shared resource; 
 a shared bus; 
 a plurality of requesters; and 
 a bus arbiter for arbitrating access requests made by the plurality of requesters to access the shared resource through the shared bus, 
 wherein at least one of the plurality of requesters outputs, according to an internal state in that requester, an internal state signal indicating that the priority of an access request made by that requester needs to be changed, 
 the bus arbiter arbitrates the access requests in accordance with the internal state signal, and 
 at least one of the at least one requester that outputs the internal state signal has an interrupt control section for controlling an interrupt occurring in that requester and generates the internal state signal of that requester in accordance with notification of occurrence of an interrupt from the interrupt control section. 
 
     
     
       4. The bus system of  claim 3 , wherein the requester having the interrupt control section makes the internal state signal indicate that the priority needs to be raised during a predetermined amount of time after the occurrence of the interrupt, and indicate that the priority needs to be maintained after the predetermined amount of time has elapsed.